


The Gottbot Beatz

by Basilintime



Category: Pacific Rim
Genre: Crack, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-10
Updated: 2014-04-10
Packaged: 2018-01-18 21:04:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1442812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Basilintime/pseuds/Basilintime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Newton discovers that Hermann has a secret talent, beatboxing, and takes advantage of a visit from his brother Dieterich to manipulate him into a live performance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Gottbot Beatz

"Oh...oh my god..." Newton glanced around the lab to make sure he was still alone before leaning closer to the computer screen to confirm what he was seeing. He'd been waiting for a sample to spin down, and had started to idly...pry, he couldn't really think of a better word than pry right at that moment. His brain was far too blown to try and come up with a creative adjective for his decision to search for Dr. Hermann Gottlieb online in an attempt to find something to use against the man. It had started out as the same old talks that Newton wouldn't admit to having watched several times before nor would he ever admit that they were damn brilliant, but now...  
"Wha-?" He couldn't even vocalize his astonishment. He'd seen the name of the video pop up as a suggestion on the side while flipping to a talk Hermann had done on the theoretical physics of overlapping and merging universes, a theme that had played into his work on the Breach. Deitz and the GottBot Beatz. He had laughed, having met Hermann's older brother Dieterich the last time he'd come to visit and fully anticipating watching the far more relaxed of the Gottlieb brothers make a full ass of himself back in 2011.  
Oh...oh, but this was so, so, so much better than he had ever expected. He'd recognized Dieterich right away despite the baggy clothes that had seemingly been worn for 'cred', but it had taken him up to the moment that Dieterich was introducing the 'Gottbot' part of the duo for him to recognize Hermann. Dr. Hermann Gottlieb of the proverbial stick up his ass standing looking mildly horrified to be on stage with his older brother. Dr. Don't-call-me-by-my-first-name, Gottlieb wearing the same ridiculously out of character clothing as his older brother as they were introduced by some DJ who didn't fully understand how amazing this all was.  
And then it had started in all its glorious nature like some alternate universe really had just overtaken their own. Dieterich said the 'song' was "The speed of light", and had looked at Hermann expectantly for a long second before the man...Oh god, Newton couldn't even fathom it despite it happening on the screen right in front of him...Dr. Hermann "The Gottbot" Gottlieb started to...Beatbox. Legitimate, and admittedly rather impressive, beatboxing. And then Dieterich started to rap, which was slightly less impressive, but still....  
He’d gotten through most of the video staring in wonder when he heard a familiar set of footsteps coming in through the door of the lab, and Newt slammed the laptop screen closed to cut off the finishing sounds of a low grade recording of high grade beatboxing. Hermann stopped in the doorway to stare at him with a disapproving look as Newton tried not to look guilty or overjoyed. He was pretty certain he failed miserably, and Hermann resumed his trudge in with his cane tapping against the floor.  
“I sincerely hope that you were not watching pornography in the laboratory, Dr. Geiszler,” Hermann’s voice dripped with disdain as he eyed Newton as though he was expecting to find him in a scandalous state. Newton started to laugh, hard, shit…he wasn’t doing very well with the acting inconspicuous thing. Hermann had frozen in place staring at him in horror until he narrowed his eyes. “Just what were you watching, Newton?”  
“Definitely not pornography, Dr. Gottlieb,” Newton said from behind tears, trying to reconcile the image of the man who was now glaring him down in the lab, the very image of propriety, with the image of the baggy pants wearing kid he’d just watched on the video. “It was one of those…um…” Newton motioned in the air circularly with his hand trying to pull something utterly mundane out of back corner of his mind, “It was that cat video from last week. Just reminding myself how cute he is with his boxes.” His voice wavered on the word boxes, and Newton almost started to laugh again but reined it in.  
Hermann didn’t believe him, looking between Newton and the laptop a few times before seeming to decide that perhaps he truly did not want to know what the biologist had really been looking at online. He turned his back to him with a sigh, going to his blackboard to start staring at the damn equations again. Newt watched him for a bit before turning back to the computer to try and close out the screen before actually opening it back up completely. 

A few tense months had passed and yet Newton was still waiting for the perfect moment to spring it on Hermann that he knew about the man’s secret double life. He’d been tempted many times to call him out on it, a simple slip of the tongue during a moment where it would prove most embarrassing to the man. He’d held back, though he’d let the thought of his postponed vengeance get him through all the different times Hermann had argue with him or insulted him which was more often than not. Hermann was on edge and had been angry a lot lately, though really the guy was always angry. Newton had pointed this out one day by commenting on how his nickname should be Dr. Banner, because really? Apparently even Hermann had gotten the reference and had served Newton some icy silence which he’d honestly found worse than the chastising.  
Now though, after all that time, it was going to pay off. Hermann had set a cup of coffee down beside him before retreating back to his side of the lab with his regulation cup of tea, and had casually dropped some news as well.  
“I will be taking a short sabbatical from the lab next week, Newton, my brother Deiterich is coming to visit for a few days.” Newton had felt a small twist of disappointment at first, things were always far too quiet when Hermann wasn’t around. He always wished for those moments of peace when he could turn up his music and tune out without the inevitable prissiness that was Dr. Gottlieb getting in the way, but when they came around he found himself staring off at the blackboard like something paramount was missing. A swell of anticipation and excitement followed too quickly on the heels of that disappointment for Newton to really dwell or think on why that was his first reaction when he processed that this was the perfect moment.  
“Really? Deitz didn’t say that he was coming by,” Newton said, perhaps maybe just a little dropping his first hint to the oblivious Dr. Gottlieb. Newton and Dieterich has shared a handful of emails since his last visit, often in relation to Hermann in one way or another whether it was Newton venting and looking for perspective on just why Hermann was the way he is or Dieterich checking in on his little brother.  
“Why would my brother say anything to you in the first place?” Hermann asked, not with his usual vehemence for once though seemingly out of genuine curiosity. Right, he’d yet to spring that one on Hermann as well mainly due to Dieterich requesting that Hermann not know he was keeping tabs. Newton didn’t quite get that part of it, though he was an only child so he may be lacking some vital key in the brother dynamic there.  
“Oh, uh…well…we email from time to time,” Newton said lamely, derailed from the thoughts of sweet revenge served to the soundtrack of beatboxing nerds in the background though only momentarily. So momentarily in fact that by the time Hermann had processed what he’d said Newton had swung around to his computer to type out an email to said older brother.  
“You email my brother?” There was something different in Hermann’s voice, but Newton didn’t have time to swing back just yet as he typed with the speed of a man on a mission.  
Dude,  
Why no warning that you are coming by? We totally need to plan a night out. Perhaps you and Herms can get ‘Deitz and the GottBot Beatz’ back together for a reunion tour.  
-Newt  
He debated for a millisecond before hitting send, turning back around in his chair and overshooting the spin velocity in his sudden burst of energy so that Hermann spun past once before he settled in Newton’s line of sight. Newton had to reorient himself for a second as dizziness made the room tilt, but then he sent his lab partner a wide grin.  
“Why do you email my brother?”  
“Why would I not email your brother?”  
“Dr. Geiszler…”  
“Sorry man, told you, only my mom calls me that. You want a response you’re gonna have to say it.” He could hear Hermann’s eyes roll from there coupled with the sigh to end all sighs.  
“Newton.” It was almost as though the word was painful to him. Geez, you’d think after like seven years of working with someone you could say their first name with reckless abandon and not disdain. He took a moment to relish it though, because after what he was hoping beyond hope would happen the next week Hermann wasn’t going to be calling him anything for a long while. Is it worth it? Newton had a moment of doubt, not certain how he felt about the lack of those moments, few and far between as they were, where Hermann shared a sense of familiarity and companionship with him. It’s worth it, he assured himself.  
“Your brother, against all odds I may add, is a cool guy, Herms. We exchanged information after the last time he came by.”  
“Oh.” It was such an unexpectedly brief reply from Hermann filled with something that Newton couldn’t quite place that he found himself watching his math loving lab partner even after he’d turned away and ended the conversation rather abruptly. His computer chimed at him suddenly, informing him that a new email had arrived and Newton turned back to find a response from Dieterich already.  
Newt,  
Knew my brother would tell you I was coming. Reunion tour will be planned and sealed once I get there. I’ll make sure to tell him it was your idea so he knows who to place the blame on properly.  
-Deitz the rap master  
Newton pushed any doubt about this being a good plan far off to the side of his brain where he also tended to keep the thoughts of food and the nagging need to eat while doing work where it couldn’t bother him. He had an event to plan and he set about going on an email rampage to some of his favorite people informing them that he may have a special concert planned for them sometime next week. 

Ok, so this may not have been the best plan. Well, he’d admit he really really wanted to see the whole Gottbot beatz thing in person himself, but he was sort of wishing he hadn’t sent that email out to other people now. Hermann had been uncharacteristically nice to him the rest of the week leading up to his brother’s arrival, which was how he knew Deiterich had yet to spring their reunion tour on him yet. I mean, the man had even called him by his first name three times during just a few days.  
That was out the window now though, he was back to being Dr. Geiszler and only Dr. Geiszler. Dieterich had arrived and had sprung the news on Hermann at some point while the two had been out during the day before because when they got back Deit was giving Newton a wide eyed look of mock fear, and Newton had felt a twist of that actual fear in his gut again with the look that Hermann had leveled at him. And yet…  
Hermann had agreed but only if they took the show somewhere the PPDC staff did not frequent to reduce the chance of someone just happening to be there when it happened. And yet, a small group of people he would consider friends, and whom he knew Hermann held in high regards, were excitedly planning on heading out to the Little Red Open Mic Night where he had assured them all they’d witness something spectacular. Mako, Raleigh, Tendo and a small gathering of the cooler engineers and technicians had all agreed to go. The Wei triplets had wanted to go, but they’d been told they were required for training that night and the Russian’s had declined without reason which had broken his heart a little until Sasha had sent a slightly (and he means slightly) more detailed email following her husband’s.  
We will go drink another night, крошка, I have surprise planned for Alexsis that night for our anniversary.  
He had taken a few moments to relish that particular though but not anymore. Now Newton was staring at the laptop in the empty lab that had felt rather lonely since Hermann was on his little ‘staycation’ wishing he could somehow go back in time and smack his hands away from the keyboard before he’d hit send the week before. He hadn’t really expected Hermann to agree or for Dieterich to be so excited in a giddy sort of joy that seemed very unGottliebish of him. He’d gotten so nervous that he’d pulled Dieterich aside when he’d seen him in the hall earlier and confessed to the invite, but his concern had been waved aside in the man’s own over confident excitement.  
He glanced at the time and sighed, too late to go back now. They were supposed to be heading out in fifteen minutes, a fact that became more apparent as Dieterich stepped into the lab with Hermann in tow.  
“Are we ready for the big debut?”  
“You have no idea how ready,” Newton said, finding that spot in his brain to push those worries right on aside again as Deit unexpectedly pulled him into a side hug while clamping Hermann under his other arm. This is going to be an amazing disaster; that buried away part of his brain toned in a voice much like Hermann’s own. 

Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god…Newton wasn’t sure anymore whether he was suddenly finding the words on repeat in his head because of his pure anticipatory excitement as Dieterich all but dragged his brother on stage or out of horror at the way Hermann had reacted to the others being there. Dieterich had been the one to calm him in the end, apparently caught off guard by just how upset Hermann had been himself, but reminding him that they technically had followed through with his request of going somewhere that PPDC crew members didn’t typically go. Mako was sitting at Newton’s side as they waited, glancing at him from time to time while Raleigh muttered something about him being an idiot under his breathe. Newton felt a little better when Mako elbowed Mr. McJawline for him.  
Dieterich took the lead on stage just like he’d done in the video that Newton was now wishing he’d never discovered while simultaneously feeling it was the most wondrous thing in the world. The introduction was a little more subdued than it had been those years ago, and Hermann looked faintly more ill than before. Oh god, oh god, oh god…It intoned through Newton’s mind in a silent sort of prayer that this wouldn’t lead to his lab partner suddenly requesting a transfer or drowning him in a tank of preserved Kaiju bits late one night.  
“The song we will be doing is called ‘Equations of the Breach’.” He heard Dieterich announce the song, glancing back at his brother expectantly while Hermann determinedly didn’t look out at the familiar faces in the crowd. He stared for a long awkward second at his older brother as though having some silent conversation that likely involved a lot of shouting and name calling before resigning himself to his fate. He had agreed though he felt it had been under duress knowing that neither Dieterich nor Newton would have shut up about the bloody thing if he’d not.  
Newton found himself holding his breathe with his most likely now former lab partner until finally Hermann had gotten started. It was different than the video, and Dieterich let Hermann go for longer to establish a full stanza of the beat progression before he started. It took Newton that long to realize what was happening amongst his internal panic and the cheers of their friends and coworkers.  
Hermann had started with a slower beat that almost sounded like the intonation of waves crashing against the shore progressively building in pace before he really got into it, and each time the full loop was repeated it grew slightly faster. Newton stared in silence now though that same tune was going on repeat in his head even now. Oh god, oh god, oh god… Only now it was a different reason that drove that silent rhythm that worked up to match Hermann’s all too familiar beat, because Newton got it. He looked around at the others, searching for someone -anyone else that was hearing the same thing he was but came up empty. But he couldn’t be wrong, no, Dr. Geiszler knew his lab partner too well to be wrong about this. What the hell is your brain, Hermann?

They had gotten good and drunk, and yet Newton’s head was still buzzing with the need to get back to the lab to check if he was right or not. Hermann had been pointedly avoiding him, talking with the others in a nervous tight clip at first until he had realized that not a single one of them were actually poking fun at him for what they had witnessed. So there, Newton had thought in his direction after getting rather far into an unofficial drinking competition with Tendo, can’t be mad at me now, can you Doctor?  
Dieterich had forced Hermann into being the one to come and collect Newton, the three of them saying their goodbyes to those who were still in the bar before stepping out into the subdued late night hustle of Hong Kong. Hermann was still ignoring him, making his brother walk between the two of them under the guise of his leg hurting and needing Dieterich’s support. Newt was capable of being his human cane too, but no…no, maybe he wasn’t cause he definitely had helped Tendo finish off that bottle of Scotch that had appeared at some point in the night and he most certainly almost just fell on his face because the sidewalk had decided to change elevation rapidly.  
“You’re not going to attempt to work in your state, are you?” It was the first thing Hermann had said to him since he’d taken the stage earlier in the night, cutting in amongst the conversation Newton had been having with Dieterich about whether it was technically allowed for him have tried to rhyme ‘Kaiju’ with ‘mine too’, which Newton had found completely unacceptable for being the short bit of rapping he’d actually managed to pay attention to amongst his wonderment at the theory he was aching to prove. It was this theory that had caused him to swing right down the hallway towards the lab midsentence rather than continue left towards their rooms where the other two were obviously planning on going.  
The three of them came to a stop for a few long seconds, everyone seeming mildly confused. Newton didn’t get why they weren’t coming to the lab since clearly if he was going to know for sure Hermann had to be there to confirm, while Dieterich and Hermann both couldn’t fathom how Newton could be planning on doing anything but crawling into bed or another bottle.  
Come on guys, if Hermann is going to really request a work transfer then I better confirm this now.  
You have to say that out loud there, champ…  
Oh. Right.  
“Come with me. I just want to check something, and you need to be there or I may just bodily rub myself against your chalkboards and ruin all your work.” The two Gottliebs stared with identical blank expressions before Dieterich laughed and Hermann muttered something under his breath that Newton didn’t catch but must have been hilarious with the way Dieterich almost doubled over in mirth.  
Newton, for once, walked faster than his long legged counterparts who fell into quiet conversation behind him. Thus, when they finally caught up with him like a millennia later they found him standing in front of Hermann’s chalkboards staring in gape mouthed wonder as he realized he had been right. The Gottlieb duo came up behind him so that he had a German giant on either side of him.  
“What…the fuck…is your brain, dude?” The words he thought came out sounding incredulous as he stared at those damn chalkboards that drove him crazy 95% of the time and had forced some weird association for him with chalk dust that he only really thought about and explored during late night showers. He didn’t get a response from either member of the tall, German peanut gallery so he motioned towards the board as though that explained his thought process at all. He would have let Tendo win that drinking contest if he had realized it would apparently lead to him losing all ability to explain, but then again…a man had to defend his title. Pride, man, pride was a bitch.  
It finally set in that he may have said something totally and completely wrong when he glanced over at Hermann and found the man standing there avoiding his gaze, back straight and upper lip sufficiently stiff. Shit…He looked to Dieterich for back up or some sign as to what he’d said that apparently was so wrong Hermann wasn’t even going to argue with him about it, but that only made things worse. He was stuck between two Gottliebs, one who wouldn’t look at him and the other who was currently staring him down with the same stiff backed stance as Hermann only the look on Dieterich’s face said that he better choose his next words wisely.  
They think you were being insulting…  
Thanks brain.  
Idiot.  
“No, no no no, look, god…shit…ok, just really I get it. I got it back at the bar, or I thought I did, but I wasn’t sure but I am now I get it. I get this.” Newton motioned towards the boards again desperately, not feeling quite so lucky to be the meaty little center of a Gottlieb sandwich as he felt he should be.  
“Well, I’m glad that your alcoholic intake has served some purpose if you’re finally able to comprehend what my ‘brain is’,” Hermann said in a condescending tone though he still wouldn’t look at Newton and the man was fairly certain there was some hurt feelings somewhere in there. “I think it would be best for us all to head to bed before anyone else feels the need to insinuate something is wrong with their lab partner. For example I may state that the overexposure to the study of Kaiju over the years seems to have diminished any grasp of what is considered appropriate human behavior for some of us.”  
“Dude, that was weak even for you,” Newton said, rising to the argument when he knew he shouldn’t. He didn’t even want to, he was just trying to explain that he so totally got it. Hermann started back towards the door of the lab, Dieterich following a beat later and Newton wanted to throw something at both of their stupid leggy selves as he gave a growl of frustration. “I’m trying to say I get why it was ‘Equations of the Breach’, god…but no, apparently trying to say your brain is awesome is insulting somehow.”  
“Asking ‘what is my brain’ is hardly the same as expressing appreciation for my intellect, Dr. Geiszler, and you couldn’t possibly know why it was ‘Equations of the Breach’; it was an unplanned direction given to me by my brother who is the only one who knows about-“  
“Your crazy weird ability to put your mathematical equations into some sort of ridiculous musical abstract that your brother then poorly raps to?” Newton held his arms out at his sides daring Hermann to deny it as it became the man’s turn to stare at him agape. “I’ve always comprehended your maths, Hermann, just like it didn’t take me more than a few seconds of listening to you give a talk online years ago for me to realize just how awesome your brain is when it comes to physics. I was simply inquiring how the fuck you also manage to have some mad skills to translate said mathematical formulas into a musical style that is completely, by the way, unsuited for you, Mr. I-only-listen-to Bach.” Ok, he was a little angry and maybe a little ranty but how dare they get mad at him when he was giving compliments.  
“I do not rap poorly,” Dieterich said, breaking the silence that had fallen over them all and looking a bit like a large sad puppy that Newton had kicked.  
“Really, dude? Kaiju and mine too? Come on.” Newton gave Dieterich a slightly apologetic shrug, but the guy had asked for his opinion earlier.  
“You…got that…” Hermann seemed perhaps a bit shell shocked by the rant, ignoring his brother getting sidetracked as he pulled Newton’s attention back to him.  
“Yeah, it took me a little bit at the beginning but I got that. You started here, with the coordinates of the Breach which landed in the middle of the ocean, hence the reason you started with that….crashing sort of sound like waves. You built into this here, the exponentially decreasing timeframe between attacks before you sped that up into that almost heartbeat tempo where the energy of the Breach spikes as it begins to open to give passage to the next Kaiju. Then, you got a bit frantic with the beat, which may be why Deitz resorted to rhyming Kaiju with mine too since he couldn’t keep up-“  
“Hey!”  
“-but that was where the Kaiju actually breaks free. The enormous release of energy from the Breach that you have calculated here that helps determine the category level of the Kaiju that emerged as well as perhaps a bit of the sheer chaos that a Kaiju embodies itself. It’s all here and it was all in your tempo and beat and sound mix.” Newton had deflated some towards the end having turned back towards the board to indicate the parts of the equations and models as he spoke about them. He turned to look back at the Gottliebs, a little apprehensive, and startled when he found Hermann standing right beside him again giving him a strange look that made Newton feel oddly warm.  
“My rapping skills are insane.”  
“Yes, yes Dieterich, your rapping skills are ‘off the charts’,” Hermann said with some irritation though Newton caught the quirk of the man’s lip as he suppressed his amusement before treating Newton to one of those rare and short flashes of a smile. 

Newton had ended up half dragging Dieterich down the hall to Hermann’s room. He hadn’t caught just how drunk the man was before, but he understood now that it hadn’t been Dieterich helping Hermann walk earlier but the other way around. Newton had taken over the task when they left from the lab after he’d shared a long and rather civil conversation with Hermann about the translation of his equations into the ridiculous act of beat boxing and how it corresponded with his synesthesia. Apparently the different beat patterns and pitches of sound could match up to the color patterns that he found associated with the numbers and letters within his equations.  
Also, apparently when Newton spoke he spoke in a range of blues. Kaiju blue, man. He pushed that thought out of his mind as he unceremoniously dumped Dieterich onto the inflatable mattress that he assumed was meant for him. Hermann was somewhere in the hall trailing behind them now since carrying your tall, gangly older brother down a sidewalk when you already had a bum leg just causes it to become worse. When he didn’t come into view after a few minutes, ok probably seconds but they felt like minutes to him, Newton started back towards the lab to find Hermann.  
It turned out that he hadn’t made it far before the pain in his leg and the alcohol in his system had worked together to place Hermann on the floor, sitting back against the wall with his eyes closed and his bad leg extended out in front of him. Newton leaned against the wall next to him before letting himself slide slowly down so they were both sitting there.  
“You’re not too horribly mad at me for having invited the others, are you?” He was feeling a little more sober now, and he found that worry was returning with it. Hermann titled his head to look at him, long neck leading down to where he had two whole buttons undone on his shirt. Such impropriety, Newton thought sarcastically to himself as he stared at the hint of collar bone before making himself look away before it could truly be considered staring.  
“It was an unpleasant shock, though I don’t know why I expected anything different. I am not…too horribly mad, however.”  
“Good…I was worried you might try and request to work in a different lab or something.” Hermann gave a snort of amusement that made Newton crack a grin at him.  
“There is no other lab for them to move either of us to, Newton.” His grin fell at this as he gave a soft huff at the implication as he stared at the wall across from them. Hermann startled him for the second time that night when he leaned to nudge him with his shoulder, ending up sliding further than intended so that he was leaning against Newton’s side fully without the energy to right himself left. “You infuriate me and you have no sense of boundaries within a professional setting, however….we work well together. I would not request for us to be separated.”  
“Aw, you’re getting all sentimental on me, Gottbot.”  
“God, please do not call me by that ridiculous name.”  
“Oh come on, it fits so perfectly.”  
“Dr. Geiszler if you call me that I-“  
“You’ll what? Hit me with your cane?” Hermann narrowed his eyes at him, though there was a spark of amusement there that Newton had started to notice often during their more lighthearted arguments.  
“Are we going to sit here all night or are you going to help me back to my room so I can make sure my idiot brother does not somehow suffocate himself in his stupor?”  
“Yeah, yeah,” Newton said, groaning as he forced himself back onto his feet before helping to pull Hermann back up off the floor. He gladly served as the man’s human crutch on the trip down the hall, getting Hermann sat down on the edge of his bed as Dieterich snored by their feet before leaving to go to his own room.  
They would avoid the subject from then on out, though Newton would from time to time notice Hermann doing that thing where it seemed like he was conducting the equations on the chalkboards. He’d watch for a while as he tried to imagine what those equations would sound like, and what colors they mixed in Hermann’s mind before he’d egg the man into an argument so he could fill Gottlieb’s mind with his own blue hues.

**Author's Note:**

> Translation:  
> крошка (kroh shkah) - crumb, a very small amount of something


End file.
